Jan is a distinctive choice, ranked #514 in 2024. Your child is likely to be the only Jan in their class.
💎
UK Rank 2024
#514
About the Name Jan
Jan has seen a notable decline in recent years, dropping 213 places in five years. It was most popular in 2017 at #226 — parents choosing it today are making a deliberately counter-trend decision. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Jan is distinctive enough that your child will likely be the only one in both their class and their school — standing out on every register.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Jan
Unlikely. With around 76 UK babies named Jan per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Jan in his class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Jan has been declining in UK popularity, dropping 213 places in the last five years. Its peak was #226 in 2017. Choosing it now means he is likely to be among the last of his generation with this name.
Jan is a distinctive choice sitting outside the mainstream UK top names. Parents choosing less common names often find their children appreciate the individuality as they grow up, rarely needing to add an initial to distinguish themselves.
Notable people named Jan include: Jan Smithers — Karin Jan Smithers is an American former actress, model and singer.; Jan Andrlík — Jan Andrlík is a Czech sprint canoeist who competed in the early 2000s.; Jan Hus — Jan Hus, sometimes anglicized as John Goose or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as Iohannes Hus or Johannes Huss, was a Czech theologian and....
Jan does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice — your child is unlikely to encounter American Jans in the wild.
76
UK babies named Jan (2024)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.0
In a school of 600
↓ 213 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Jan
Likely around 1 other Jan in the class
UK Popularity (1996–2024)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Jan
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Karin Jan Smithers is an American former actress, model and singer. She is best known for playing Bailey Quarters on the CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati.
Jan Andrlík is a Czech sprint canoeist who competed in the early 2000s. At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, he was disqualified in the semifinals of the K-2 1000 m event.
Jan Matsys or Jan Massijs was a Flemish Renaissance painter known for his history paintings, genre scenes and landscapes. He also gained a reputation as a painter of the female nude, which he painted with a sensuality reminiscent of the school of Fontainebleau.
Jan Hus, sometimes anglicized as John Goose or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as Iohannes Hus or Johannes Huss, was a Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and the inspiration of Hussitism, a key predecessor to Protestantism, and a seminal figure in the Bohemian Reformation. Hus is considered to be the first Church reformer, even though some designate the theorist John Wycliffe.
Jan Jakub Quirin Jahn was a painter and art historian from Bohemia. Jahn studied painting from an early age, under his father until 1758 and later under established painters Jan Ferdinand Schor and František Xaver Palko.
Jan Joest, also known as Jan Joest van Kalkar or Jan Joest van Calcar, was a Dutch painter from either Kalkar or Wesel (both now in Germany), known for his religious paintings.